Armenia calls for excluding Ukraine from BSEC Parliamentary Assembly

Armenia’s delegation to the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) has called from excluding Ukraine from the Organization’s Parliamentary Assembly.

In comments to the Public Television of Armenia, Chief of the National Assembly’s Staff Ara Saghatelyan said the delegates cited the November 2011 incident, which saw the Assembly pass controversial amendments to its Declaration on Regional Conflicts in the absence of any representative from Armenia.

Saghatelyan, who is also a member of the delegation, said he called for a more critical and serious attitude to the body “which has 25 years of experience”.

“I made a special remark that the Secretary General’s place and role consists in ensuring an equal participation and work by all the parties involved,” he noted. “We have a great deal of problems to resolve in the economic and humanitarian sectors. So once we are through with them, we may embark on the discussion of certain political matters.”

Saghatelyan said he also reminded the Assembly of the recently cancelled Armenia-Turkey protocols, proposing cooperation on the level of experts and professionals. He added that they have partially realized the plan through cooperation with the Swiss and German parliaments, and the Israeli Knesset.

Armenia, as a founding member of the Organization, has proposed conducting the next BSEC summit in Yerevan.